Cox Lake

How big is Cox Lake?

How deep is Cox Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Cox Lake?

Are there boat launches on Cox Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Cox Lake?

Cox Lake is a 75-acre lake located west of Itasca State Park in southern Clearwater County. There is County-owned, unimproved public water access on the west shore of the lake off County Road 39 with parking for two trucks/trailers. The access may not be suitable for larger boats.

Cox Lake is managed as a winterkill lake which is re-stocked with fish after winterkills occur although a significant winterkill of fish has not been documented in some time. The surface area of Cox Lake increased considerably during the 1990s and connected the basin to two adjacent ponds which may have helped reduce the frequency of winterkill events in the lake.

Cox Lake is managed primarily for Largemouth Bass with Black Crappie, Bluegill and Yellow Perch managed as secondary species. There is a robust Largemouth Bass population which was surveyed in mid-June via night electrofishing. During the 90 minutes of collection time, 211 bass were captured resulting in a catch rate of over 150 fish per hour which is an exceptionally high catch rate for the Bemidji area. Lengths of fish measured were found over 18 inches and averaged 10.5 inches. Natural reproduction appears to be successful and consistent resulting in multiple year classes present in the lake. Low fishing pressure also likely contributes to the high abundance of bass in this out-of-the-way fishery.

The Black Crappie trap net catch rate of 2.67 fish per net was similar to the statewide average of 2.33 fish per net for similar lakes. Black Crappie up to 12.22 inches in length were captured. Some reproduction has occurred recently as was evident from the catch of smaller Black Crappie in the 4 to 7-inch length range. Bluegill are plentiful in Cox Lake but had a smaller than desired average size of 5.11 inches in the trap nets. The trap net catch rate of 38.65 fish per net was well above the statewide average of 21.50 per net from similar lakes.

The 2018 survey results showed a good Northern Pike population in Cox Lake. Pike were abundant with a gill net catch rate of 10.67 fish per net, which was well above the statewide average for similar lakes (7 fish per net). Pike captured had a good average size of 23.66 inches in length with nearly 20% of the catch exceeding 30 inches in length.

Yellow Perch and a few Walleye are also present in Cox Lake. Perch had a small average size of 6.8 inches with just a small proportion of the catch approaching 9-inches in length. Walleye likely entered Cox Lake from an adjacent pond used for Walleye rearing in the 1990s. The few Walleye captured in this survey were large, with an average size of 23.57 inches in length.

Are there any state parks near Cox Lake?